A valve actuator is known from German Patent Application No. DE 101 16218, in which a shaft end of a gas exchange valve is connected to the positioning piston of a valve actuator using at least two shell-shaped wedge parts, which enclose the shaft end and support themselves axially on the positioning piston, and whose radial outer peripheral surface runs conically and is enclosed by a conical clamp sleeve. The conical clamp sleeve has a radial inner peripheral surface which runs complementarily to the conical angle of the wedge parts and is axially clamped against them by a threaded connection implemented on the wedge parts. Because of the implementation of the conical angle and threaded connection on the wedge parts, these are relatively complex components which are very costly to manufacture.
A connection between a shaft end of a gas exchange valve of an internal combustion engine and a final controlling element of a valve actuator, in which the wedge parts are clamped using a separate conical clamp sleeve, is known from German Patent Application No. DE 100 40 114. The clamping is performed via a clamping body and an interposed clamping disk. The connection occurs at the end of the final controlling element distal from the combustion chamber and therefore requires a relatively long shaft. In addition, a relatively high part count is necessary for this clamped connection.